


the truth i finally see

by i_was_human



Category: Lost in Translation (Webcomic)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Tokyo Ghoul, Blood and Injury, Fights, Gen, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Implied/Referenced Character Death, No beta we die like mne, Secret Identity, a bit of crack, it's minsoo what do you Expect, lee minsoo: confused 24/7, mcd is not any of mayhem dw
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-19
Updated: 2020-10-19
Packaged: 2021-03-09 00:27:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,102
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27095791
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/i_was_human/pseuds/i_was_human
Summary: "Hi," Minsoo weakly states, and Dongho blinks at him, bewildered. "Congrats!""What.""You didn't eat us?" Minsoo hysterically adds, and Dongho blinks at him again. "I mean, congrats! I know if I was living with some sexy cakes, I'd wanna bite them all the time, so congrats on, uh, not doing that!""Are you okay?" Dongho asks, and Nari shrugs."I think you broke him."
Relationships: Ahn Jaewon | Wyld & Kang Dongho | D.Min & Kim Daehyun & Lee Minsoo, Kang Dongho | D.Min & Lee Minsoo, Kang Dongho | D.Min & Nari (Lost in Translation)
Kudos: 11





	the truth i finally see

There is a certain saying among the ghouls of Seoul, and it goes something like this: _do not make friends with your food_.

Not the most _poetic_ of sayings, per se, but one that's there regardless.

Younger ghouls will question the necessity of it - _why would you ever make friends with food?_ \- and their parents will laugh and ruffle their hair, hoping to _god_ that they never have to experience the stabbing _ache_ of betrayal.

See, the thing is-

you can't _not_ make friends with your food.

It's just... not a thing that can happen. Humans are far too prevalent for that to work, and ghouls can't isolate themselves due to the obvious fact of _them needing food_.

Of course, if this fails, there's a second rule. _Stay under the radar, and don't get caught._

If you _have_ to befriend the humans, which most people do, at least don't be _obvious_. Don't be a well-known ghoul _or_ a well-known person, because people _will dig_.

Isn't it fucking _hilarious_ , then, that Dongho's managed to fail both of these _simple fucking rules_?

 _Don't make friends with your food_ \- oh, boy, he never stood a fucking _chance_ with Lee Minsoo around. Minsoo - the yin to his yang, a dancer and rapper just like him with a bright smile and never-yielding drive - and after him, Daehyun and Jaewon.

That was his first mistake.

 _Don't be a well-known person_ \- that ship too has sailed. Being an idol offers _no_ room for secrecy, especially not in a world as all-seeing as this one, and all of Dongho's secrets are being dragged out one by one, laid bare for the world to see.

But lastly-

_Don't be a well-known ghoul._

The most important rule to follow.

The most dangerous rule to break.

Because when Dongho's called the "Butcher of Seoul", is it really any shock that people are looking for him?

* * *

"Ah..."

Daehyun's gaze strays towards the t.v., lips curling into a forlorn frown as the news broadcasts the site of yet another ghoul attack. "That's close to home..."

"Yeah..." Jaewon murmurs, picking idly at his salad. " _Too_ close..."

"Aww, don't be scared!" Minsoo chips in, grinning at them as he scarfs down his burger. "I'll protect you guys!"

Dongho privately doubts any ghoul would be afraid of Minsoo in the _slightest_ , but he keeps that thought to himself. 

"I'm heading out," he states instead, placing his plate in the kitchen and toeing on his shoes. "Going to do some choreo practice."

"'kay!" Minsoo calls, waving a cheerful farewell. "Don't die!"

"Wow," Dongho drawls, pulling out his phone. "Don't die. Life-changing advice. _Don't die_."

"Fuck you too!" Minsoo laughs, and Dongho rolls his eyes before ducking out the door.

There's a new ghoul in his territory.

But, of course, running in with _express murder_ on the mind usually leads to someone dying, so he'd rather go through his liaison.

It's a short enough walk to Coffee Days, and he listens to a new song by MARSHMELL-O - something about eating? It's the sort of dark irony he fucking _adores_ \- as he strolls along, taking in the autumn leaves.

This really is the prettiest season.

As he draws closer, he catches sight of a certain blond, and he purposely lightens his steps as he draws closer, finally making it close enough to grab her around the waist. 

_"Pervert!"_

He... kinda deserved that.

"Nice elbow," he states, reaching up to rub his jaw. "Have you been working on that?"

"Fuck you," Nari laughs, leaning forwards to flick his forehead. "Why are you here, Dongho-yah?"

His gaze drifts to the street, then to the empty shop, and he squares his jaw. "I'll tell you inside."

* * *

"Yeah, I know him."

Nari swirls around her coffee, seriousness reflecting in her eyes. "Goes by 'Model'. I warned him out of your territory, but he wasn't interested in talking."

"Of course."

"Be _careful_ , Dongho-yah," she warns, and Dongho quirks a brow, taking a sip from his mug. "He's a rinkaku. You're at a _huge_ disadvantage."

"Is he good?"

"Yes."

Well, fuck.

"I'll just have to get the jump on him, then," Dongho states, and Nari arches a brow.

"Is this like the last time you 'just had to get the jump on them'?"

"That time was _different_."

"You should take Taehyuk with you," she states, and Dongho shakes his head.

"It's my territory. I need to hold it myself."

"He is _good_ ," Nari emphasizes, tapping the table for emphasis. "He is strong, and he is fast, and he almost outpaced _me_."

"You?"

" _Me_ ," Nari confirms, and Dongho's brow ticks higher.

"Damn."

"If you need backup, any one of us will help you."

"I can handle it," he affirms, and Nari exhales, long and slow. 

"...I don't want to see you dead, Panther."

"It's Butcher," Dongho quips, "or haven't you heard?"

"You put so much effort into your brand," Nari laments, and Dongho snorts, rolling his eyes.

"I gave it five seconds of thought when I was sixteen. Panther is a _terrible_ name."

"So is Butcher."

"What would you have suggested?"

"Mister Rainbows," Nari states, and Dongho snorts.

* * *

Waiting fucking _sucks_.

He doesn't want to get in a fight when there's active prey involved, and he _definitely_ doesn't want to get in a fight where he's at a disadvantage, so right now it's just... waiting.

Dongho _hates_ waiting.

He stares up at the starless sky, a long exhale escaping his lips. That's the bad part about autumn - nights are fucking _cold_.

Footsteps ring through the alleyway, and he leaps off the edge, kagune forming as he falls.

It's go time.

His blade clashes with a series of tentacles, and he leaps up and over, digging his foot into the ghoul's chest and kicking him back. The man cracks his jaw, a taunting grin on his face, before he leaps back into the fray, tendrils arcing five different directions.

Fuck.

Dongho leaps back, catching himself on the fire escape before he shoots forwards. He manages to avoid the first three and deflect the fourth, but the fifth scores a hit through his shoulder that's barely worth the measly scratch he manages to leave on the ghoul's neck.

"Is that all you got?" the ghoul taunts, tilting his head from side to side as Dongho skids along the pavement, blood seeping from the fresh cuts on his hands. "I would've thought you'd be better."

"Fuck you."

He leaps forwards, slashing forwards with his kokaku, but he quickly has to fall back into a defensive parry, the ghoul's rinkaku tentacles shooting at any hole in his defense.

A spot at his side- _blocked_.

A spot at his ribs- _blocked._

A spot at his thigh-

He slashes through the tentacle as it pierces his leg, but that just gives an opening for two more to stab through his other shoulder and gut. 

_Fuck_.

The tentacles disappear in an instant, and his leg nearly gives out under him as soon as they're gone. As it is, he doubts he can move, and the burdensome weight of his kokaku is anything but helpful in that regard. 

_Fuck_.

"Hey!"

He raises his head, watching as Nari and Taehyuk leap from the building above, and he grins, legs finally giving out as he watches them fight.

...god, he's going to be fucking _mortified_ later.

The pair of them drive him back, Taehyuk slashing through his tentacles and Nari scoring hits on his body - until finally Taehyuk manages to skewer him, pinning him to the wall with his bikaku.

"You wanna do the honors?" he asks, turning to stare at Dongho, and the latter nods, struggling to his feet.

 _Fuck_ , he's dizzy. He should be healing quicker than this.

He manages to stumble over to the man, his kokaku reforming as he stops in front of him, and the Model grins at him, teeth painted with blood. 

"You gonna kill me, huh? You gonna-"

He doesn't have time to finish his sentence.

"Fuck," Nari states, then turns back to Dongho. "Oh, _fuck_ -"

Taehyuk barely manages to catch him before he falls to the ground, though even as it is, it's more like... a slightly impeded fall.

Poor Taehyuk.

Dongho's completely limp in Taehyuk's grasp, the wounds in his shoulders still bleeding sluggishly, and Nari pulls him back to lay him over the ground, a pained sigh escaping her lips as she catches sight of the gaping wounds in his gut.

"Goddammit, Dongho-yah..."

"Well," Taehyuk unhelpfully states, "at least this night can't get any worse?"

"What are you doing to him?"

The two of them raise their heads, gaze landing on a trio of humans, and Nari slowly exhales as she realizes their kakugan are on full display.

Oh, boy.

"Get away from him!" the shortest one shouts, shoving the other two behind him. "If... if you wanna fight him, you have to go through me!"

"You just _had_ to break both rules, didn't you?" Nari snaps, and Dongho, unsurprisingly, doesn't reply. "Aish... look, can we talk about this-"

The guy maces her.

He fucking _pepper sprays her_.

"Oh," Nari spits, cracking her knuckles, "it's fucking _on_."

* * *

If you asked him, Minsoo could not tell you how he ended up on a couch at a ghoul headquarters, Jaewon and Daehyun on either side and a very terrifying blond lady sitting across from them.

"So," she starts, splaying out her hands, "how much do you care about your hyung?"

"You _ate him_ ," Minsoo spits, and the woman sighs.

"Just answer the question."

"...a lot. Why."

"How much."

"...I'd kill a man for him."

Embarrassing as that is, it's not entirely a lie.

"Good enough," she sighs, folding her hands in her lap. "So, fun fact - your hyung is actually a ghoul."

Minsoo blinks once.

Then twice.

" _What_?"

"What?" Daehyun echoes, and Jaewon looks vaguely ill.

"Yeah. He's... not doing so great right now, but he's a ghoul. A really, really strong one."

"Why are you adding that?" an orange-haired boy bemoans, and the woman glares at him.

"I am adding all _relevant detail_."

"We eat people. That's all the relevant detail."

"You shush. So, how're you taking this?"

"What?" Daehyun repeats, and Jaewon looks like he's exited his body.

"...not the worst reactions we've ever had. Do you wanna see him?"

"Yes," Minsoo immediately replies, and the woman blinks before frowning.

"Are you gonna try to stake him?"

"What?"

"It's an issue we've had. Say yes or no."

"No!"

"Cool. Follow me, then."

"You're oddly relaxed about this," Minsoo notes, and the woman lets out a small huff.

"I could say the same about you."

"I pepper-sprayed you."

"I told you I'd eat you if you didn't come with me."

"We're doing _great_."

The woman pulls open the door, and _oh_ , there's Dongho.

Minsoo stops short at the sight - his best friend lying ghostly-pale on the bed, bandages wrapped around his bare torso and hundreds of scars lacing his chest and arms - and the woman nudges him forwards before shutting the door.

"What happened?"

"He lost a fight," she dryly replies, taking a seat by his bed. "Hasn't been hunting much lately, so he's not healing super quick."

She picks up a small package from the side table, and Minsoo watches as she unfolds the edge, sticking a corner in Dongho's mouth.

"Wh-"

Dongho jolts upright, eyes flooding with black and red, and Minsoo stares, a hand coming up to clutch at his shirt.

Dongho looks-

 _Dongho's a ghoul_.

This is how ghouls look.

This is Dongho.

(he may or may not be internally screaming and imagining himself on a very nice beach in costa rica.)

He watches as Dongho slowly consumes the packet - _that's definitely human flesh what the fuck_ \- and when he raises his head, his eyes are back to brown and white.

"Hi," Minsoo weakly states, and Dongho blinks at him, bewildered. "Congrats!"

"What."

"You didn't eat us?" Minsoo hysterically adds, and Dongho blinks at him again. "I mean, congrats! I know if I was living with some sexy cakes, I'd wanna bite them all the time, so congrats on, uh, not doing that!"

"Are you okay?" Dongho asks, and the woman shrugs.

"I think you broke him."

"Seriously!" Minsoo exclaims, flashing Dongho a thumbs-up. "That's awesome!"

"...please don't bake a cake."

"Wha- what's wrong with baking a cake?"

"I can't eat them."

"I will make a communal cake!"

"Oh my _god_ ," the woman wheezes, and Dongho sighs, his head falling into his hands.

"Life is pain."

"...and if I made you a cake, wouldn't it be cannibalism-"

" _I will pay you to shut up_."

**Author's Note:**

> fic title from the tokyo ghoul opening, unravel
> 
> leave a comment...... i feed on them
> 
> may write more of this au if i get enough too 0v0 perhaps an angstier part?
> 
> also the model is totally minseok
> 
> [twit](https://twitter.com/i_was_human_) | [lit fic discord!](https://discord.gg/CNunB74)


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